Jessica Rudman
These Distances Between Us for Mezzo-soprano and Piano with Text by Aiden K. Feltkamp 2018 ca. 14:00
These Distances Between Us for
Mezzo-soprano and Piano
Performance Notes
• Grace notes should be played before the beat.
• Rolled chords should start on the beat.
• Breaks between movements should be short. Movements marked “Attacca" must be played without a break, and other movements may be performed with or without a break as desired.
• Individual songs and/or any combinations of songs may be excerpted as needed. If non-adjacent songs are performed in succession, Attacca markings may be ignored. If song II is played without song I, the tremolo in the piano left hand should be omitted.
• If the piano lid is open, the singer may sing into the piano in song III.
• In the vocal part, the following notation is used for a microtonal pitch 3/4 flat:
• In the piano part, the following notation is used for chromatic clusters:
Vocal Range
• Overall: G3 -Ab5
• Song I: A3 -G5
• Song II: B3-F#5
• Song III: C#4-F5
• Song IV: G3-Ab5
Program Notes
The song cycle These Distances Between Us sets four poems by Aiden K. Feltkamp that explore distance—both physical and emotional—in relationships. When Aiden and I first discussed a possible collaboration, I was struck by how these texts expressed a deep longing tempered by a powerful tension between optimism and realism. Each has a distinct perspective, yet all share a poignant awareness of the precarious nature of personal connections, particularly those where physical separation and mental illness come into play. Though not originally from the same collection, the poems form a striking progression moving ever inward, as if the distances described are somehow being closed.
Composer Contact Information
Jessica
Email:
Rudman
jessica@jessicarudman.com Website: www.jessicarudman.com { { { c l o p s e r , -4 1 p c l o pp s e r , - - - -4 3 pp ppp ø c l o ppp b r e a t hy s e r , - - u n pp t i l - we l o s e p t he n e e d f o r q= 7 6 a t e mp o mo lt o r i t . a c c e l. 4 5 pp p q= 7 6 a t e mp o mo lt o r i t . a c c e l. ø ø 3 2 3 2 3 2 4 4 5 4 4 4 5 4 4 4 5 4 4 4 5 4 4 4 4 4 5 4 4 4 4 4 5 4 4 4 & & “” & ∑ & & :“; & ∑ ∑ & & & ∑ ? ˙ b˙ ˙ Ó Ó bœ #œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ bœ #œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ Ó b˙ b˙ b˙ ˙ Bb w Bb Œ œ œ bœ #œ œ nœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ bœ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ˙ ˙ œ Œ œ œ œ #œ ™ œ J œ œ œ œ bœ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ bœ #œ ˙˙ ˙ ˙˙ ˙ ™ ™ ™ ww w #w # ˙ ˙ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ˙ ˙ ™ ™ w w w ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ ∏ 1 6
I. The Ward
How many ways must we say goodbye
on the yellow-lined, mine-pocked subway platforms echoing with the thunder of wild machines
among the weary travelers clogging Laguardia airport between the cool, newly-scented sheets of bed & night where only dreams breathe
amidst the hours & days & weeks when your illness hides you from me within those white walls and I am suddenly a stranger playing the refugee in your heart
How can I say hello when I am so accustomed to saying goodbye
II. The Flight
These distances between us expanding & collapsing – fate’s accordion –taunt me with their mere existence
How can I open a tesseract between our lungs between the infinitesimal spaces science stacked between our atoms
How can I draw you closer, ever closer, until we lose the need for lightyears & space travel & equations & those lonely lab techs to get us breathing the same air
III. The Brick Café I put my ear to your sternum and heard the howling air of your cavity: the sea-shell yearning for home, a crabless, shell-shocked thing marooned on the sands of the world.
IV. the morning all softening warmth it sucks me in loosening my limbs pumping space between hinges ball & socket disentwining your hand a welcome tourist in the country of my skin wanders over hills, in valleys exploring each town, each cabin
perhaps filled with pastries seduced by landscapes you’ll apply for citizenship stay a lifetime
Text
